1. Types of ground floors

2. Suspended Ground floor-1890’s
Joists supported on sleeper & external wall
Minimal ventilation
Rising Damp
No insulation

3. Ventilation for a suspended floor
Terra cotta air brick through wall

4. Improvements in design
Joists sitting on sleeper wall with attached wall plate.
Incorporation of dpc to prevent rising damp
Sleeper walls built in ‘honeycomb’ style to allow extra ventilation
Extra air bricks

5. Modern Timber Floors Timbers are longer Extra ventilation
Insulation incorporated

6. Suspended concrete floors
Typical block and beam floor
Quick and cheap to install
Inverted ‘ T’ shaped beams
Concrete blocks placed in between them

7. Ground Supported floors
Solid ground of hardcore supports concrete floor
Thick damp proof membrane placed under concrete with a layer of insulation
Typical slab – 150mm with reinforcement

8. Upper floors To provide extra stability for external walls
Joists built into wall
Chipboard typically placed on top of joists

9. Upper floors Galvanised joist hangers are built into wall
Forms a ‘shoe’ or ‘seat’ for joist to sit in.
Modern prefabricated joists with metal banding are now commonly used

10. Upper Floor
Chipboard upper floor with water proof covering and taped joints